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You are here:Animalia>Cnidarians>Zoanthids>Golden Zoanthid

White Encrusting Zoanthid

Aspect:

Whitish mass of encrusting colonies with irregularly shaped oral discs that are more or less tightly squeezed one against the other. Can easily be mistaken for Smooth Flower Coral (q.v) because from a distance, the tentacles curling outwards over the disc edge resemble the coral's septa.

Population: Common.
Notable feature: Oral disc edges feature double rows of tentacles.
Environment: Relatively shallow reefs.
Behaviour: Tentacles retract if touched and mouths shut nearly completely to form domes.
  • French designation: Zoanthaire incrustant des caraibes
  • Latin designation: Palythoa caribaeorum
  • Creole designation: -
  • Latin family: Zoanthidea
  • Size (cm): 3